Redman Ramblings

First of all, we essentially finished the floors a week ago. We still need to do the thresholds and the quarter-round... that's another story.

Chris and I went to the shop yesterday to borrow the work truck to go buy some quarter-round. The truck was in the back shop, which we had to access through a locked gate and a locked door. Then, Chris had to slide this giant metal door open and shuffle some vehicles around to get it out. Finally, he had me pull the truck up and wait for him to lock up and come out. I waited... and waited... and finally, he emerged, cradling his hand to his chest, dripping blood. Turns out, not as dramatic as it sounds, but I'm still glad I didn't witness Chris catching his finger in the giant metal door as it slid closed. Ouch! Needless to say, we still don't have the quarter-round.

Another troubling story... we have had a serious mockingbird problem for the past few weeks. This pair showed up out of nowhere one day and wisely claimed our yard, with two dogs in it, for an ideal nesting place. If you know anything about mockingbirds, you know how extremely annoying they can be--they dive-bombed my dogs (Addie retreated under the shed whenever possible), stared at us through the window, making loud bird noises, and traumatized my cats. Chris and I were so fed up, we kept talking more and more about a violent end for the birds. I did a little Internet research about how to get rid of a mockingbird (does this remind anyone of Failure to Launch?) and came across mostly animal-activist type responses about embracing and enjoying this marvelous creature. Then, yesterday, karma hit... Chris discovered Daisy toying with a seemingly almost-dead female mockingbird. Not quite sure what happened, but apparently Daisy had her fill of being pecked and pestered by a bird. I started to feel a little guilty for my recent murderous thoughts, especially when the bird's mate sat on my flower pot calling for its mate. : ( I told Chris to put the poor thing out of its misery, and he asked how he was supposed to go about that. I said, "Don't you have a shotgun?" Well, apparently that's not a wise idea, so it was shot down (pun intended). He did take the bird to the shade and out of reach of the dogs, and I'm happy to report that it had perked up quite a bit today and was hopping around the yard. Sadly, I don't think it can fly... but the good news is that I haven't seen a mockingbird all day.

I went to Crate & Barrel Saturday and got a pineapple slicer! It is soooo cool! Here's some pictures of my first trial with my new gadget.

Beautiful slices of FRESH PINEAPPLE! :)

Finally, last night Noah wanted to sleep in his tent. He lasted about 20 minutes before wanting in his bed.

Lightning McQueen tent, purchased with a generous gift card from Great-Uncle George and Great-Aunt Edna!

Story time in the tent